Ultra-thin notebook sales languishing?

Occasionally arch rumor site Digitimes takes a break from speculation and leaks and does some research into PC hardware sales performance. Latest niche to come under their microscope is the "ultra-thin" notebook, generally based on Intel's CULV (consumer ultra-low voltage) platform, and offering a middle-point between the battery longevity of netbooks and the performance of full-sized notebooks. Unfortunately for manufacturers, Digitimes claims the ultra-thins will only account for 4-percent of total global notebook shipments in 2009.

The issue, according to their research, is price, with the ultra-thins simply too expensive for their own good. Netbooks are offering better battery life at ever-falling prices, while budget notebooks are also falling in cost but offer much higher performance than the ultra-thins. European and North American demand apparently remains low, and Digitimes predict no significant improvement despite some big names - HP and Dell, among others - entering the segment in Q4 2009.